Economic Benefits

Energy Industry Helps Drive Economic Growth

Energy is the lifeblood of any economy. It’s what heats our homes, fuels our vehicles, powers our factories — and generates the jobs and economic growth that shape the quality of our lives.

Global energy demand is projected to grow by more than one-third by 2035 and fossil fuels are expected to remain a dominant part of the world’s energy mix. Nexen is in the business of responsibly producing oil and natural gas to help meet this demand. We are now a wholly-owned subsidiary of CNOOC Limited. This puts us in an even stronger position to develop our assets and pursue growth opportunities in a way that generates far-reaching economic benefits including direct and indirect job creation, goods and services contracting, the payment of taxes and royalties, and community.

A Growing Investment in Our Energy Future

Future investments are primarily targeted to fund growth as we move ahead with several major projects, including:

Continuing to add production in the UK North Sea — including our Golden Eagle Area Development, with first oil on October 30, 2014 marking the first day of a 25-year lifespan for the field.

Expanding bitumen production from our Long Lake, Alberta, Canada, oil sands lease, along with accelerated development of the nearby Kinosis lease, as part of a plan to operate our Long Lake upgrader at full capacity.

Continuing to ramp up production at Usan, while also identifying other expansion opportunities in offshore Nigeria.

Advancing exploration projects, including promising joint venture projects at the Appomattox and Stampede fields in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

As part of CNOOC Limited, Nexen has greater capacity to invest in areas that promise to create long-term value. A good example is our shale gas business. Nexen plans to make prudent investments in shale gas, primarily in British Columbia, Canada — one of the most prospective gas fields in North America. We are also exploring the viability of a west coast LNG facility and terminal, with a vision of delivering clean-burning natural gas from our British Columbia assets to growing Asia-Pacific markets.